The medical term for itch is pruritus. Itch is an unpleasant sensation on the skin that provokes the desire to rub or scratch the area to obtain relief. Itch can cause discomfort and frustration; in severe cases it can lead to disturbed sleep, anxiety and depression.Our book highlights the lack of standardized tools for pruritic assessment.This can be accounted for by the non-availability of validated objective methods for itch quantification.Novel treatments are necessary. However, well-designed clinical trials require appropriate outcome measures to evaluate the response of pruritus to treatment
